captioned by the national captioning institute --www.ncicap.org-- >> greece is still in need of fresh money. the country is trying desperately to avoid bankruptcy. many greeks have lost that battle already. welcome to the "european journal." ghost towns, children of migrant workers just want to return to believe. -- to italy. shrimp fishing does not pay off. greece is still trying to get

its finances under control. the economy is slumped and it does not look like the country will get out of the vicious circle anytime soon. many greeks are losing heart. they have spent all their savings to pay off their debts. those who do not have a family to support them risk losing their homes. night falls in athens. the tourist feel the taverns and the traffic on the street dies down. that is when they seem to appear, as if out of nowhere. he lived on the street for about a year. then he found a way out. the charity organization made a house available. hear, 10 homeless people can find their way back to normal life.

>> to think about what it is like to live on the street makes me sick. never again. i have been here for five months doing what a person does when they lived in the house. some of the people here have found jobs. i really felt touched. now i have some hope. >> he shares the room with two other men. they have a bath and can do their laundry. there is even a television. real luxury for someone accustomed to sleeping on the ground. >> you cannot describe what it is like to be on the street. i was at the point where i sat on a park bench and wept like a small child.

>> today, the roommate's each a kind of ratatouille, mixed vegetables and baked in the of them. he says that it tastes fantastic. 50 other people, mostly men, sit in the courtyard waiting. on mondays and wednesdays, the house serves a warm lunch. inkling to homeless people who do not live here. tuesdays and thursdays, they can come to shower and wash their clothes. he was a title later who first lost his job, then his apartment. he comes here to eat and check the papers for job offers. >> first, i lost my job. then my dignity. like many others, i sleep on a bench. here today, there tomorrow, i sleep wherever i find a place.

here, we get psychological support. we talk with social workers and have a shoulder to cry on. that makes it easier, but only for a few minutes. then the fall into the same insecurity. -- that we fall into the same and security. >> he has often considered killing himself. now becomes every day and enters his name in a but, like everybody else. the book enables the head of the homeless project to estimate how the number of homeless is growing. in 2009, grace had around 7000 homeless. current estimates are around 20,000. we are not talking about people with an average or higher education. the new homeless do not have psychological problems. they are not alcohol or drug addicts and they do not have police records. compared with the usual homeless people, they have better chances of reintegration into society.

for the deputy social minister, it is a new situation. he has to find money for those in need. refugees from other countries did housing benefits from the state. it would only be fair if a great citizens got help as well. >> -- a greek citizens got help as well. >> the homeless shelters are not enough. we have to know how many people are in this situation. >> about two-thirds of all greeks: their own homes. the crisis means more and more rental apartments are empty. we need -- we meet with them again. he worked in construction for 20 years as a painter. now he has a job again, collecting paper. he sells it as raw materials. >> i earn about 400 euros a

month. me and my colleagues say a little bit of that continually. someday, we can live again like we used to, before we were homeless. >> until then, he will have to collect quite a bit of newspapers. -- used papers. >> in the mid-1950s, the first wave of italian market workers came to germany. they were hired to do hard jobs for very little money. they all had a dream. one day their children would be better off than them. this sent back the cash to italy and that house is built there -- house is built there. not all dreams come true. >> when he moved from germany to his parents' home town in italy, it was like going into a ghost town.

it is full of half finished homes. >> the germantown starts here. as you can see, everything is half finished, has built. >> the owners moved abroad in the 1950's and 1970's and send their money back home. today, the apartments they build are empty and falling into disrepair. >> the residents wanted to breathe new life into the town. they built houses suitable for large families in the modern part of the town. 4000 apartments are empty in a town that is 8000 inhabited. to bonnie is one of the handful of german-born descendants. >> i think that in my village --

i have been back in my village for one year. >> bg of money -- giovanni's father built the house. but they only spend their summer holidays here. >> unfortunately, the children have not come back, so they are empty. nobody lives here. our parents' dream has not been fulfilled. >> in germany, he ran a thriving restaurant. at the moment, he is taking a break. to see if living here is something he wants to do. >> last year, we moved here for a rest because it was a stressful job. time will tell whether we will do something here or whether we will go back. >> he wants his daughter to

learn proper italian. his wife enjoyed a big family get-togethers. unfortunately, those only happened a few weeks the year. then most of their friends and relatives lead again. he knows everyone in the village, but he does not have much to do with the pensioners. most of them are former immigrants, who spend most of their time playing cards. many of them live off german pension. >> most of the people standing around here were in germany. >> they can live well here on their pension, but their children would not be able to find work. >> i have got a child in germany. a son. 28 years old. and a son in scotland.

no more work, unemployed. >> things have not improved years since the original left. there is nothing to attract their children. besides a big agricultural and shellfish farming, there is no big industry. the town is near the sea, but tourism is underdeveloped. instead, the residents have tied up their money in apartments that their kids do not want to move into. the mayor is concerned that so many people in this town with all four intentions. >> many pensioners -- live off foreign pensions. >> like everywhere in italy, unemployment is high. you never know if the young people will be able to get a job. >> he is living on his german savings. the laundry spent here, the clear he becomes a he does not belong.

-- the lumber key -- the longer he lives here, the clearer it becomes that he does not belong. >> i feel like a tourist here, not really attached. >> when the visitors leave, the town returns to its quiet self. he has given up its dream of living in a community with other returnees of his own generation. >> the people known as travelers are a group of nomads to live in the united kingdom. they are originally from ireland and there are about 300,000 of them waving in caravans. -- living in caravans. they are not welcome everywhere. >> the entrance to dale farm

resembles the kind of shrine. it has been home to several hundred cars travelers for more than 10 years. they live in caravans and makeshift bungalows. now it seems they will be removed. >> eviction would be heartbreaking. all families would be split up. we have nowhere to go. they're splitting up families, breaking up homes. helms that we built together. >> the travelers bought the land years ago in order to set up their own community, in accordance with their own culture. >> are part of life is we want to live in caravans. we cannot live in houses. we just want to live in our caravans and carry out our culture.

we cannot live in houses, we said that from day one. >> bay bought this side, and they had no idea that to the council would denied them permission to build. >> the land they have occupied -- you are not allowed to build on it. the occupied the land. they built on its illegally. now it's time for them to leave. >> the residents see this as a transparent excuse to get rid of them. they also face hostility from neighbors. his garden backs on to the site. >> as you can see, this is overgrown. you can see all the rubbish. a lot of it, i have cleared up on a daily basis. you can see the fence and the corner.

that was all smashed and damage. >> many local residents see the farm as a blot on their rule landscape. the travelers do not understand why there neighbors are so opposed their presence. the school this and their children to has been boycotted by many permits rest -- residents. they said the school has declined in quality since the children started attending. >> i have two kids. i do not want my kids to come up that way. >> the travelers prospects are not good. the court has ruled they are not allowed to build on the land or live there. exactly when they will be evicted is not clear. the bailiffs are ready for action.

the area is familiar territory for the bailiffs. back in 2004, they removed another traveler settlement nearby. >> dale farm residents have won several reprieves. the travelers case has gained nationwide attention and sympathy. >> obviously, it is violence if you go into somebody's home and pulled out a child or an old lady from their bed. nobody here is the violence.

if you move this structure, somebody will get killed. >> residents are tired of the pressure. they are worried that there will be nowhere else in england for them to go. >> for a long time, turkey's top priority was to become a member of the european union. it is almost looking as if the country is looking interest, to say the least. there currently threatening any you membership. -- there currently threatening a andn eu member. reunification between greek and turkish people seems farther away than ever before. >> on saturday, and military parade was staged and the

capital of the republic of cyprus. a demonstration of power addressed to a much more powerful turkey. cyprus feels threatened because turkey wants to prevent the brakes on the island from drilling for oil and gas offshore. turkeys and intimidated warships into the eastern mediterranean. if the drilling -- it says the drillings are completely legal and ask the millet -- the international community to mediate. >> this is an issue of political and diplomatic movement spread -- movements. this is an issue of respecting the sovereign rights of the cyprus republic. >> the source of the crisis is 200 nautical miles east of the coast of cyprus. a huge deposits of natural gas.

>> up to now, cyprus has had to import oil and gas. if the drillings are successful, experts estimate that the island republic will have 3.5 trillion cubic meters of gas at its disposal. >> a discovery would transform the island's economy. it would provide a new source of natural gas for europe. it could make some significant improvements in the lifestyle. >> since 1974, cyprus has been divided between the ethnic greek south and ethnic turkish north. they fear they will be excluded from a new energy boom. they want to collaborate with

turkey to look for gas north of the island. >> it will be done -- everybody acknowledges the turkish people have that right about the resources. in case our activities are going to be prevented, this will cause a problem. >> the turkish north of cyprus is poured on the great south come up with wages 25% lower. the north is internationally isolated and dependent on turkey. the greek side says it is legitimate government of the whole island and has not offered to share the gas profits. >> we will say, ok, we should

sit down and talk all together if they want a solution. >> of the european union has called on both sides to keep a cool head. cyprus is a member of the eu and turkey is a candidate for membership. brussels has little influence on them. many people see turkey's aggressive stance as demonstrating a lack of interest in joining the eu. >> turkish officials have been saying for the past few months that they will freeze relations with the u.n. cypress' takes over in july 2012. we are looking at no channels been opened and then. things are pretty bad between the eu and turkey. >> the financial benefits of the

deposits could be an opportunity for a peaceful solution to the decades-old conflict. the prospect of a financial windfall has not brought cyprus reconciliation. >> shrimp once had a reputation for being an expensive delicacy. just like salmon, they are long since lost that exclusive an edge. almost anybody can find it at this stage. there are more than enough of them and the sea. fishermen have taken to large- scale fishing let be. that is making life extremely difficult for the german counterparts. >> setting sail for another day's work, but there's trouble brewing. not that it is immediately apparent.

they might have huge -- it is a tiring job. the little boats have a two or three-man crew. they are all to see come rain or shine, day or night. it is a tough life, but one that he would not trade. >> we have been trawling for two hours and it looks good. we have some nice clean schrempp -- shrimp, and nothing that we don't want. >> they are becoming a problem. there are too many of them, which is bad for the price. he used to pay a or nine it euros a kilo, but says that is no longer the going rate. the competition has intensified.

>> we are heading toward dumping prices and it is the fishermen you are paying the price for that. -- who are paying the price for that. they are doing less efficient in the hopes that the price will go back up. to little effect so far. >> what would a fair price be? >> at the moment, we did 2.50 euros. it should be three. demand is correspondingly high. diners at this restaurant now have to pay less. 2.60 euros. that is almost as cheap as a burger from a fast-food joint. is cheap goods if it means putting independent fissures on

a business? >> i would be willing to pay more. >> if it was one year a more, yes, i would still buy it. >> we crossed the border to meet this fishermen in the netherlands. it has the largest fleet in europe. there are over 200 boats docked here. the big boats also catch shrimp. many of his colleagues deliver their catch, a trade them to the traders. they're worried about not being able to catch a decent price. the traders are becoming increasingly powerful. it has become a couple of business. piting the big fish against the

menand fishermen up against each other. >> but traders have to take on their share of the responsibility and contribute to a solution. this is not the 1960's. we are living in the year 2011. it is ridiculous. >> the fishermen have their supporters, and not because of romantic notions of sailors on the high seas. what matters now is whether they will manage to survive the price wars. >> if the price keeps on going down and we cannot make a profit, the fishermen will not have any choice. we will not survive. >> it is another example of consolidated businesses, hanging smaller operations out to dry.

>> that was the "european journal." thank you for watching.